The present invention relates to a program and a method for controlling the operation of a printer.
A printer, a copying machine, a facsimile machine, or another image forming apparatus may be connected to an information processor, in which a printer driver is installed. The information processor originates print data for image formation. If the information processor issues a print instruction and transmits it to the image forming apparatus, the apparatus prints an image according to the type of printing paper, the printing mode, and the other settings specified by a user in a window activated by the printer driver.
In recent years, from the perspective of terrestrial environment protection, it has been requested strongly to save the printing paper, colorant, and other printing media used by image forming apparatus. Some of the functions of image forming apparatus promote resource savings by reducing the number of sheets of printing paper used by the apparatus. One of the promoting functions is a double-side printing function for the printing of images on both sides of a sheet. Another of these functions is an aggregate printing function for the printing of two or more shrunk images on one sheet.
An image forming apparatus having a color printing function can save resource by reducing its consumption of color ink, color toner or other colorant by printing less important color images as monochromatic images.
JP-2008-022423-A discloses an image forming apparatus that can literally display printing conditions more effective for resource savings than those set by a user. The user can select one or more of the displayed conditions. If the user lacks experience in printing, it is difficult for the user to foresee from the literal display an image to be printed under the selected condition or conditions.
In view of the foregoing problem, the object of the present invention is to provide a print control program and a print control method that make it possible to prompt a user to resource savings (reduction in printing medium consumption), and that make it easy for the user to foresee an image or images as printed under a condition more effective for resource savings than a condition set by the user.